Never Too Late
by katskill162
Summary: When a demon attacks Fairy Tail, Gray and Loke are forced to sacrifice themselves in order to save the rest of their friends.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello everyone, this is my first story so please be kind, I'm doing the best I can. This doesn't take place in any specific arc. Enjoy and please review!

Never Too Late (Chapter 1)

The battle had been raging for hours by now, and nearly all of Fairy Tail's sources were depleted. Natsu, Erza, Gray, Lucy and all the others were bloodied and battered, barely able to keep standing and fighting, and the demon they were facing had barely even slowed down. The town had sustained massive amounts of damage but thankfully the citizens had already been evacuated. Natsu threw himself at the demon again, only to be met with a harsh backhand that sent him flying backwards. He slammed into the ground and skid backwards a solid ten feet before slamming into a large piece of what once was part of a wall.

"Natsu!" Happy screamed, flying towards him. The cat helped him back to his feet, "We're not going to win this one are we?" Happy asked with big eyes filled with tears.

Natsu shook him off and said firmly, "Of course we will, We're Fairy Tail!" Knowing that his flying friend wanted to help he added, "Why don't you go see if everyone else is doing alright, and make sure Grey doesn't do anything stupid." ' _Like try to use Ice Shell_.' He thought bitterly. Truth be told he was just as worried as Happy. There weren't that many wizards left and the monstrous 30 foot tall demon was still fighting. Come to think of it, Natsu hadn't seen the other members of his team, save Happy, in a while. Fear twisted his stomach at the thought of them being hurt or worse. He didn't have to wait long however, as he was steadying himself on the rubble behind him Gray came flying through the air and crashed at his feet. Natsu's eyes widened at the sight of his bloodied friend as he bent down to help him up. Gray leaned heavily on Natsu's shoulder, and Natsu, looking down, saw why. One of Gray's legs was twisting at an odd angle and he could barely put pressure on it. As his eyes flicked back up Natsu took note of his rival's other injuries. Gray's shirtless torso had a long slash carved in it that stretched from his left collarbone to his right hip. He had additional cuts littering his face and arms and visible bruising showed across his whole body.

"You look like crap." Gray mumbled.

If the situation wasn't so dire Natsu would have laughed, "Yeah, says you." Natsu shot back, "You're definitely one to talk." Natus was fairly sure he wasn't wrong though, he could feel blood dripping from his temple and was well aware of the various injuries all over his body from his brushes with the demon. Natsu helped Gray sit down on a boulder and he tilted his head back against the ruble to rest his eyes for a moment. They sat like that for a minute or so in silence,the only sounds coming from the fighting behind them and the burst of magic energy, though even that was coming at less frequent intervals. Natsu closed his own eyes and leaned back, savoring the moment of rest, but he was quickly pulled out of it by Gray's cry of pain. Natsu's eyes shot open and he lept off the wall.

"I'm fine." Gray groaned. Natsu looked at his leg, which was now facing the right direction.

"Well what'd you go and do that for?" Natsu snapped.

Gray shrugged and though he tried to keep it level Natsu could hear how it was laced with pain. "Can't fight on a broken leg." Gray said simply. Natsu watched, dumbfounded, as Gray held a hand over his knee and used ice to wrap it and hold it in place. Gray pushed himself off the rock and took a shaky shep forward, attempting to hide the grimace of pain.

Natsu shook his head in disbelief and said, "You can't seriously think you can fight like that?"

"Don't need to." Grey replied, "I've got a plan."

Natsu shot forward and grabbed Gray by the shoulders, turning him so that they were looking at each other. "You are NOT using Ice Shell." Natsu yelled, and as he said it he was reminded of their trip to Galuna Island where he had to watch his rival try to use the Ice Shell and was forced to knock him out to keep him from further hurting himself; and Natsu was seriously considering doing it again.

Gray pushed Natsu off him and snapped, "I'm not using that, you dumb Pyro."

"Well how was I supposed to know that?" Natsu shouted, throwing his hands up.

Gray sighed and shook his head, "Just stay back, alright?" He turned back away but Natsu grabbed his arm and stopped him.

"And what makes you think that I'm going to let you do something that might get you killed?" Natsu asked.

"I _just said_ I wasn't using Ice Shell!" Gray yelled in exasperation. He wrenched his arm away.

"Then why'd you tell me to stay back?" Natsu asked, "'Cus I'm thinking it's because you don't want me to stop you."

Gray sighed and ran a hand through his hair before turning away slightly. Then, with his magic adding to his strength, he threw a lightning fast punch at Natsu, hitting him squarely in the face. Gray winced, hating himself for what he'd done, as he watched Natsu fall to the ground.

Natsu struggled for a moment as he tried to push himself back up, the punch adding to his previous injuries. "Gray...no." He whispered before his eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed back to the ground, unconscious.

Gray sighed and turned away, "I'm sorry Natsu." he whispered. ' _I have to find Loke.'_ he thought. Ignoring the pain in his leg, he limped forward into the battle, thinking solely on how he was going to find the celestial that was the missing part of his plan. As it turned out it wasn't too incredibly difficult to locate the man. He was in the heat of battle, fighting alongside Erza. "Loke!" Gray shouted, "I need your help!"

Loke risked a glance over his shoulder to shout, "I'm a bit busy at the moment!"

"I think I know how to beat this thing!' Gray yelled back, "But I need your help!"

Erza, overhearing the conversation, shouted, "How?"

"I'll explain later!" Gray replied, "But it's a bit time sensitive so I need your help now!"

Loke turned to Erza, "You got this?"

Erza nodded, "Go help him."

Loke nodded and pulled back, running towards Gray and following him as he was lead behind a mountain of rubble. They crouched down and Loke asked, "What's the plan?"

"We're going to send it to the spirit world." Gray stated.

Loke's eyes widened and he asked, "We're going to do WHAT?"

"We're going to send it to the spirit world." Gray repeated, "You're going to focus your magic on creating a bubble of energy that will work as a portal to the spirit world, and I'll distract the demon as well as create a shield around the others so they aren't transported as well." Loke stared at him, mouth hanging slightly open. "What, you don't think it will work?" Gray snapped.

Loke shook his head and ran a hand through his hair, "No, I mean it's a great plan in theory but there's a lot that could go wrong."

Gray nodded, "I know. Could you maybe try to aim for somewhere unpopulated?"

A small smile played on the corners of Loke's mouth, "It doesn't matter, demons can't survive in the spirit world, my main concern is you."

"Me?" Gray asked.

"Yeah, you." Loke replied, "Humans can't survive in the spirit world for long either, and if we get pulled through I doubt I'll be able to bring us back."

"It's a risk we'll have to take." Gray said firmly, "I don't hear anyone else offering up a better plan."

Loke nodded, "First we have to draw everyone away from the demon though."

"Leave that to me." Gray said, "You focus on getting the spell ready."

"Are you sure you're going to be able to do this?" Loke asked, "I mean, you kinda look like crap."

Gray sighed, "Everyone's a critic." With that as their parting words the broke off, Loke heading for high ground to prepare the spell while Gray headed back to the battlefield to draw everyone off. ' _I have to find the master._ ' Gray thought, ' _He can order a retreat.'_ It was just as easy to locate Makarov as it was to locate Loke.

"Master!" Gray yelled, drawing him away from his attack.

Makarov whipped around, "What is it, I'm busy!"

"I need you to order a retreat!" Gray called.

"What?!" Makarov snapped, "We don't retreat!"

"I know how to beat this thing!" Gray assured, 'But I need everyone to clear out!"

Makarov peered suspiciously at him, "You're not planning on using that bloody Ice Shell are you?"

Gray sighed, "No master, Loke and I are going to send it to the spirit world, it won't be able to survive there."

"Will it work?" Makarov asked, "Without further casualties?"

Gray thought back to Loke's warning but brushed it off, "Yes." He assured.

If Makarov noticed his hesitation he didn't mention it, "Very well, I'll order a retreat." He said, "Go get ready."

Gray nodded once, "Get as far away as you can." he said before walking away without waiting for a reply.

"Good luck." Makarov whispered to his retreating back, "Be safe." He turned back to the demon, and using magic to amplify his voice yelled, "Retreat!"

A series of shouts rose up in response but they followed his orders. Within a few minutes all members of Fairy Tail, save Loke and Gray, were out of the danger zone. Gray looked to Loke and nodded before raising his hands and beginning to create a wall around the battlefield to contain the magic energy. As the two wizards began their spell Natsu was struggling to his feet.

"Oh no." He whispered, seeing the blue magic of his rival rise up. "What are you planning?" He slowly got to his feet, ignoring the pulsing pain in his head. Suddenly Erza and Lucy were at his side, helping him balance.

"Natsu, are you alright?" Lucy cried, taking in his damaged appearance.

He shrugged her and Erza off, "I'm fine." He grumbled, "We have to get to Gray."

"Gray?" Erza asked, "I haven't seen him."

Natsu motioned behind them, towards where the wall of ice was growing increasingly taller, "He's right there."

As they turned around Lucy's eyes widened, "That's Gray?"

Natsu nodded, "He told me he had a plan, right before he knocked me out so I wouldn't stop him."

"You don't think…" Erza trailed off but Natsu knew what she meant.

"He said he wouldn't use it." Natsu assured, "But I have no idea what he's planning."

"Master ordered a retreat." Erza said, "He must know what's going on."

"We have to go back." Lucy cried, "What if he needs help?"

Erza placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "We won't leave him alone." she promised. Lucy and Natsu nodded in agreement, and they began their walk back to the battlefield.

Gray's breath was coming out in pants by now. His injuries had begun taking a toll on him and the amount of energy he was expending was starting to reach his limit. The shield was almost finished, it would have been done by now but Gray kept having to stop in order to deflect the demon's attacks on him and to send some of his own in return. The demon's fist came down once again as it tried to crush Gray but he swiftly avoided it by rolling to the side. As he staggered back to his feet he heard Natsu yell his name. There was a single opening in the wall where Gray planned on getting out so Loke could send the demon back without sending him as well, but he was now on the opposite side of it. Natsu and the others noticed the opening as well and headed straight towards it, intent on coming in to help Gray. ' _No!_ ' Gray shouted mentally, ' _If_ _they get in here, they'll be send back as well!_ '

"Gray!" Loke yelled, "You gotta get out of there, the spell's almost done!" Gray looked up at the magic energy crackling above him, he knew he didn't have long before it zapped everything through the portal. The demon was lumbering towards him, and he knew he would never make it to the opening before Natsu, Lucy, and Erza did. The demon roared as it advanced, intent on killing the ice mage. Gray made his choice. He raised his hands and fired a bolt of ice directly at the opening to seal it just as Natsu reached it. He hit the wall and bounced off, slamming into the ground.

"Gray!" He screamed. Still laying on the ground he fired off a spell, hitting the wall with an onslaught of fire. Erza reached the wall next and pulled out her sword, beginning to attack the wall. Neither of them made a dent.

Inside the arena Gray climbed to his feet and prepared himself for the demon's attack. His back was to the wall, and he had nowhere to run. ' _Oh well._ ' He thought, ' _At least the other's are safe.'_ He closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall, thinking of his life. He wanted his last image to be of his friends and family in Fairy Tail.

Suddenly there was someone above him, "Gray!" Loke screamed, "Grab my hand!"

Gray gasped and looked up, seeing Loke's outstretched hand. He grabbed on and Loke began to pull him up just as the demon reached him. The demon grabbed Gray's legs and pulled him backwards. Gray screamed in pain as his already broken leg was crushed but he still tried to let go of Loke's hand, not wanting to pull him down with him. Unfortunately, Loke held fast. The demon whipped both of them around and sent them flying into the opposite wall of the arena. They slammed into the ice and slid down to the ground, directly in front of Natsu, Erza, and Lucy. Loke lay on the ground, unmoving, but Gray managed to pick his head up and lock eyes with Natsu. "I'm sorry." He whispered.

Tears cascaded down Lucy's face as she screamed and pounded her bare fists against the ice, causing them to bleed. Gray's hand slid down the ice wall as he fell unconscious, and light from Loke's spell lit up the arena.


	2. Chapter 2

Never Too Late (Chapter 2)

Natsu scrambled backwards as Loke's spell engulfed the area in golden light. The magic spread outward, pushing against the edges of the ice wall and causing pressure cracks to seep through. Slowly the light dimmed and retreated, and the ice shattered and crumbled down to reveal a bare field. Erza helped pull Natsu to his feet and the three of them walked cautiously into the field.

"Where'd they go?" Lucy asked, her eyes welling up again with tears.

"I-I don't know." Natsu whispered. As they stared at the empty space in shock they heard footsteps coming from behind. They turned and saw Makarov leading the rest of the guild towards them.

Natsu shot forward and stared down at Makarov, "What happened?" He shouted, "What did you let him do?" Makarov looked down, defeated, and said nothing.

"The demon," Mirajane said quietly, "it's just gone."

Makarov turned to face those behind him, "The demon was vanquished to the spirit world." He said as he addressed the guild.

"Yeah," Natsu snapped, "and Gray and Loke with it." A series of shocked and disbelieving whispers swept through the group as they turned back and forth to see for themselves that the two men were gone.

"Are you sure they are gone?" Makarov asked pointedly.

"Well they aren't here!" Natsu shouted, motioning around wildly. He felt tears prickling in the back of his eyes but he willed himself not to let them fall. Erza put a gentle hand on his shoulder but Natsu shrugged her off forcefully and turned away, his hands curling into fists by his side.

"They could still come back." Lucy said, though she sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than anybody else. Suddenly an idea dawned on her and her eyes widened.

"What is it, Lucy?" Erza asked.

Lucy's hand flew to her side where she kept her keys, "I can summon him!" she cried, "If he grabs onto Gray I can pull them both back through!" She got into her summoning stance and pulled out Loke's key. "Gate of the Lion, I open thee! Leo".She cried. Dust swirled around her but there was no sign of the celestial or Grey. Lucy took a shaky breath and shook her head before taking her stance again. "Gate of the Lion, I open thee! Leo" She yelled again, amplifying her voice. Again, nothing happened and the echo of her voice slowly faded, leaving the area silent. Lucy held her head down and her shoulders began to shake with silent sobs. Suddenly her knees buckled and Erza lept forward to catch her, letting Lucy lay her head against her shoulder and cry. "I'm so sorry." Lucy whispered, "I can't bring them back." Natsu whipped back around, his eyes burning with anger and pain.

"So that's just it?" He screamed, "We just leave them there?"

Mirajane stepped forward and pulled Natsu into her arms, "Please Natsu," She said quietly, "this is hard enough." She was already crying but it took her a moment to realize that the shaking was coming from Natsu as he cried, and not just from her. As Natsu lifted his eyes he could see the rest of the guild, most of them were shedding tears. Natsu closed his eyes and finally let his injuries and exhaustion get the best of him. He went limp, and his weight dragged Mirajane down with his. The last thing he heard before he lost consciousness was Mirajane shouting his name.

Natsu slowly pried his eyes open despite the fact that they felt like they had been glued shut. The first thing he noticed was that Happy was curled up on the bed near his feet, and the second thing he noticed was that Lucy was asleep in a chair next to him and she had her head laying on the bed near his hand. Natsu blinked heavily and shook his head slightly in an effort to clear it. His entire body ached and confusion clouded his mind. "Lucy?" He said quietly in a hoarse whisper. She stirred slightly but didn't wake so Natsu cleared his throat and tried again. "Lucy?" He asked, louder this time. She groaned softly and shifted before picking her head up to look at him.

"Natsu!" She cried, a wide grin spread across her face and she threw her arms around him. She hugged him tightly, and though the action hurt him he didn't mention it. After a few seconds Natsu felt a wetness on his shoulder and he realized she was crying.

"Lucy, what…" He trailed off, not sure what to say. She pulled away and wiped at her face, smiling sadly.

"I'm sorry, Natsu." She said quietly, "I was just so scared that I lost you too."

"Wha-" Natsu cut himself off as the realization of everything that happened came crashing down on him. The pit in his stomach opened up and it felt as if an icy fist was closing around his heart. "How, how long was I out?" He asked.

"A few hours." Lucy replied, "We brought you back to the guild hall after...after everything."

"Gray?" Natsu asked, dreading the answer, "And Loke?"

Lucy looked down for a moment as she blinked back tears. "I'm sorry." She whispered.

Natsu let out a shaky breath and leaned back, closing his eyes. "Natsu?" Lucy asked tentatively, placing a light hand on his arm.

Natsu shook his head dismissively, "I'm fine. I just need some alone time."

Lucy smiled sadly as if to say, ' _I know you're not, but I'm not either and I'm going to let you deal with this your own way._ ' Out loud she said, "Ok, I'll be just outside, and when you want to talk again there's a whole bunch of other people who want to see you too. Erza nearly beat me up when I suggested she leave you to go get herself checked out."

Natsu chuckled, "Yeah, that's Erza for you."

Lucy laughed softly and nodded, 'I'll let you get some rest." She said. She picked up Happy who was just beginning to open his eyes.

"Natsu!" Happy cried happily.

Natsu grinned, "Hey there Happy."

Happy tried to unwind himself from Lucy's arms but she held onto him tighter. "Come on Happy," she said, "let's let Natsu get some rest."

"But he was just sleeping!" Happy protested.

Lucy sighed, "Come on Happy, you can came visit Erza with me."

"But Erza scares me!" Happy said.

Lucy nodded, "Exactly, so you don't want to make her angry, do you?"

Happy sighed and shook his head, "Fine."

"Good." Lucy grinned. She walked to the door but paused with her hand on the handle and turned back to look at Natsu. "I'm still trying." She said solemnly, "I won't stop trying to summon them."

Natsu didn't trust himself to speak so he just nodded. Lucy shot him a sad smile and exited the room, leaving Natsu alone with his thoughts.

' _Why'd you do it, Gray?'_ Natsu asked mentally, ' _You knew the risks so why did you do it? And why'd you drag Loke into it?'_ He sighed and leaned back against the headboard, "Why'd you do it?" He whispered out loud, his voice broken. The question continued playing over in his head until exhaustion claimed him once again.

It took Natsu about a week to be back to full power, and it was another few days until he finally began talking and acting a bit like his former self. There was talk in the guild about holding funeral services for Gray and Loke but Natsu, Erza, and Lucy crushed all talk of it whenever the conversation arose. However it was reaching the point where it was a moot point, and even Lucy was attempting to summon them less frequently. In fact, she was barely summoning any of her spirits. She had attempted to summon Virgo in an effort to gain information on Loke and Gray but nothing happened. Lucy suspected it was because the action of bringing a demon into the spirit world caused disorder and transportation may have been temporarily closed as a result.

Team Natsu was eating in the guild hall in silence. The other wizards made attempts to make everything seem like normal but the banter was halfhearted and the chatter was nearly non existent. The fact that they had no idea what had happened to their two guild mates made everything worse. It would almost be better if they just knew that they were dead, at least then they would have closure. This pressure from the unknown occasionally caused lapses of silence, and it was during one of these when an unwelcome visitor quite literally popped in.

The guild hall was mostly silent, save for the sounds of eating. Midway through their meal however there was a flash of light and a young girl appeared in the center of the room.

The wizards in the hall lept to their feet, poised to attack, but Lucy cried out, "Stop!" She pushed her way through the others and stood in front of the girl. "You're a celestial, aren't you?"

The girl nodded and said softly, "My name is Ara."

"Ara?" Lucy asked, and after the girl nodded Lucy said, "My name's Lucy, I'm a celestial wizard."

Ara nodded timidly, "I know ma'am."

"You're the first spirit I've seen in awhile." Lucy commented, "Do you know why no one else is coming through?"

Ara nodded, "There was a disruption and all transport has been closed for a few hours to allow for everything to reset and go back to normal."

Lucy nodded, "I see. How were you able to come through then?" she asked.

"I was sent by the King to deliver you a few things." Ara said softly, "It was discovered that Leo was the one that brought the demon through, and it was agreed upon in your contract that if he was to die, he wanted you to have his belongings."

Lucy felt a stab of pain shoot through her heart and she gasped softly. She had assumed the worst just like everyone else but she had still been holding out hope that Grey and Loke would waltz through the door, good as new. "He's dead?" She asked in a whisper.

Ara nodded, "I'm sorry ma'am." she said sympathetically, "I didn't know you were that close. We scoured the area but there was no evidence of anything alive."

"But you didn't find any bodies?" Natsu asked, the words came out sharper than he intended.

Ara shook her head, "All due respect sir, but you didn't see it. Anything that had been near the point of entrance would have been killed on impact. The place they came in has nothing but valleys a mile deep, and there were no bodies found on the solid ground. We did however find some belongings scattered around the area." She reached into her satchel and pulled out a pair of glasses. "I'm sorry we couldn't find anything else." She said kindly as she handed them to Lucy. Lucy turned them over in her hands, one of the lenses was broken and the wire was bent but they were definitely Loke's. Tears prickled at the back of her eyes but she refused to let them fall.

She handed them back to Natsu, "They're his." She whispered. She turned back to Ara, "Is that all you found?"

Ara shook her head and reached back into her bag, "No there was this as well." She held out her hand and allowed the item to fall into Lucy's outstretched hand.

Lucy gasped softly as the cool metal touched her skin. She looked down at Grey's necklace and swallowed to push back the tears that threatened to overwhelm her. Natsu peered over her shoulder and let out a sharp exhale. ' _They're dead._ ' he thought, ' _They're dead and they're not coming back.'_ Suddenly his legs felt weak and he leaned back against the table behind him.

"I truly am sorry for your loss." Ara said gently, "I'll contact you if we recover anything else."

' _Like their bodies.'_ Natsu supplied mentally.

"Thank you." Erza said thickly, not trusting Natsu or Lucy to speak. Ara nodded and stepped back and there was another flash of light before she disappeared. Lucy closed her fist around Gray's necklace, not caring that the sharp metal was cutting into her hand, and pressed it to her chest. Then she hung her head down and cried. The other members of the guild hung their heads in sorrow, before Gildarts raised his hand high, forming the symbol of Fairy Tail, and within moments the others had followed in suit.

-Three Weeks Later-

Both Loke and Gray had been given memorials on the grounds of the Fairy Tail Guild, and funeral services had been held for both of them. After that, things seemed to be going back to normal. People were taking jobs again and the chatter in the hall was nearly the way it was before the deaths of the two members. Both Natsu and Lucy had began training with Erza, not wanting to take any jobs for the time being but wanting to keep their strength up. Natsu had taken to wearing Gray's necklace, and Loke's glasses had a permanent spot on Lucy's nightstand. Though Lucy was now able to summon her spirits again, she didn't make an attempt to use Loke's key, it resided on her nightstand alongside his glasses; her own little memorial to the celestial. Though the wizards' absence was felt everyday, few physical changes occurred, with exception of the memorials and the training sword Erza gifted Lucy in their second week of training. She wore it strapped to her hip, claiming that she wanted to be able to defend herself better. The 'and others' was unspoken but widely recognized as truth. Team Natsu was getting back to its usual chatter and they seemed to be, not quite moving past it, but getting by. They had just finished another round of training and were now taking a break to relax in the hall as they ate their lunch.

"You should watch your opponent's hips." Erza stated, addressing Lucy's technique between bites of food. "A person can fake many things but where they plan to move will always be betrayed by the direction their hips are facing."

"Hips don't lie." Lucy said with a soft chuckle.

"Why is that amusing?" Erza asked.

Lucy just shook her head, "No reason."

Natsu sighed and crossed his arms behind his head as he leaned back in his chair and put his feet on the table, "I'm just glad we're learning some more skills." He said lightly, "We can take more jobs now."

Lucy groaned and shoved his legs off the table, "That's gross, Natsu!" She snapped, "We eat off this!"

Happy, who was floating lazily over their heads said, "I don't see what's so wrong with it."

Lucy rolled her eyes, "Yeah, you also eat raw fish."

"Hey!" Happy cried indignantly, "What's so wrong with raw fish?"

"Nothing if you're a cat!" Lucy retorted.

Happy opened his mouth to say something in reply but Erza cut him off, "Stop fighting, you two." She snapped, "You're acting like children."

"Yes ma'am." Lucy and Happy said meekly.

Natsu chuckled at their antics before poking at Lucy's wooden training sword, "So when are you going to get a real sword?" He asked.

"When she earns it." Erza replied for her.

Lucy grinned and said, "And hopefully that will be soon."

"Maybe." Erza said, smiling softly, "If you can get your stance right."

Lucy smiled back and raised another bite of food to her lips, maybe things weren't like they were before, and maybe they never would be, but they were getting better.

A/N: To anyone reading this, thank you so much for reading this far- only one more chapter to go! Please review, it would make my day!


	3. Chapter 3

Never Too Late (Chapter 3)

A/N there was some kind of glitch that resulted in the chapters repeating themselves, if anyone noticed, I'm very sorry and I believe I've got it fixed. Anyway this is the final chapter, so thank you so much to anyone who's reading! Please review, they make my day!

Natsu was just finishing the last bite of his (second) lunch when the doors to the guild hall flew open. A series of gasps rushed through the patrons of the hall as people lurched to their feet, a few even screamed. Everyone ran towards the two figures as they stumbled in, and Team Natsu- who were in the back of the room- were right on their heels. Natsu shoved his way through the crowd as shouts of "Get the Master!" and "Get a medic!" rose up around him.

Gray stood before the guild, nearly completely covered in blood. Loke was draped over his shoulder, unconscious. Gildarts took Loke from him gently and held him in his arms bridal style. Gray was breathing hard and swaying on his feet, and no longer able to support his own weight, he collapsed. Natsu lunged forward and grabbed onto his friend before guiding him down to the ground and laying him down gently.

"Loke," Gray gasped, barely able to talk, "he, he needs h-help." His words were slurring as he stuttered, "Too much, too much 'nergy." He could barely keep his eyes open and Natsu wasn't even sure he was comprehending what was going on.

"It's ok." Natsu assured him softly, "You're safe, you're both safe." Gray leaned up as if he was going to try to climb back to his feet but Natsu pushed him back down gently.

"I have to, I hav'to protect 'im." Gray mumbled, "Demon's still there." He tried to twist his body to the side to look for Loke which only resulted in causing him to cry out in pain. Natsu reeled backwards, not sure if he was going to hurt him. He settled on grabbing his shoulders and pushing him back down. Gray's breathing was slowing down, and that would have been a good sign for Natsu if it didn't sound like it was growing shallower as well.

Natsu couldn't ignore the heat that was radiating from the ice mage's skin, which worried him more than anything else. If he had a wound that was infected it would account for his delirious state. Natsu shushed him gently, "Save your energy." He said softly, "You'll be fine." Gray mumbled something incoherent and Natsu mumbled what he hoped were words of comfort in reply.

Suddenly Grey's eyes shot open and a flash of clarity flitted across them. "Natsu?" He murmured.

Natsu felt a grin slide across his face, "Yeah, yeah it's me."

"You're wearin' m' necklace." Gray stated.

Natsu chuckled, "Yeah. You can have it back once you get better."

"Why're you wearing m' necklace?" He asked, his voice growing weaker.

"I wanted to keep it safe." Natsu replied, "Now stop talking."

Gray nodded in responce, then turned his head to the side to cough- wincing as he did so. He closed his eyes against the pain, only to have Natsu's voice pull him out of it. "Try to stay awake, ok?" Natsu said, "Just until a medic gets here."

"Mmhm." Gray mumbled, "Wha' happened round 'ere?"

"What did I just say about talking?" Natsu snapped jokingly.

"Why?" Grey asked, "Sick of m' voice F-Flame Brain?"

' _No.'_ Natsu thought _, 'Never again.'_ Out loud he said, "Yeah, you Popsicle, so why don't you shut it?"

Gray laughed softly, which promptly turned into a cough that sent him through spasms of pain. Through the haze of pain he noticed his vision going black around the edges and growing steadily darker. "Don't think I'm gonna make it 'til the medic gets 'ere." He mumbled.

Natsu just shook his head, "You made it all the way back here, you aren't checking out just now." Gray nodded and mumbled in agreement but even as he did so his eyes were flickering shut. Suddenly Natsu slapped him lightly in the face, "Do NOT close your eyes." He said fiercely. "The medic is coming RIGHT NOW and you _are_ going to make it." Gray thought that he saw tears sparkling in Natsu's eyes but he could barely trust what he was seeing right now so he figured he was probably wrong, Natsu couldn't care about him that much could he? The next thing he knew someone was calling for a path to be cleared and Natsu was being pushed off him to make room for someone else. A bright was shown in his eyes, causing a stab of pain to shoot through his head, and he flinched away from it. Then he was being picked up and carried, but someone tripped and jerked his leg. He cried out in pain and this time when the blackness crept into his vision he let it overwhelm him.

Natsu collapsed onto one of the benches as soon as Gray and Loke were carried away. Now he was sitting up with his head in his hands, choosing to ignore the fact that he had Gray's blood on him. He heard someone sit beside him and, without checking to see who it was, said, "I just...I don't understand. It's been weeks." Suddenly he shot to his feet,"We left him alone for weeks!" He shouted. Feeling defeated, even after his outburst he sat back down and put his head in his hands, "They were injured, and alone, and we left them there."

A comforting hand was placed on his shoulder, "We didn't know."

' _Ah,_ ' Natsu thought, ' _It's Erza.'_

"We can't undo anything." Erza continued, "But we can help them now."

"Did you even see him?" Natsu asked quietly, "He looks a thousand times worse than he did when Lyon beat the crap out of him on Galuna Island."

Erza nodded, "I know."

"What happened to him?" Natsu asked, thinking out loud, "He didn't look that bad the last time I saw him."

"I don't know." Erza said softly.

Natsu turned to face Erza, not caring that his eyes were brimming with tears, "We lost them, and we moved on. Now we just got them back and we might lose them again!" He shoved himself away from the table and walked towards the door.

"Natsu, where are you going?" Erza shouted after him.

"I need some air." Natsu called back without turning around. He stalked out of the hall and wandered around the grounds for a few minutes before he found himself standing in front of Gray's memorial. He stared at it in silence until someone broke it.

"Now I wouldn't go thinking about tearing that thing down just yet." Laxus said haughtily, "The kid still looks pretty crappy to me."

Natsu whipped around, his hands clenched in fists. "What the hell's your problem man?"

Laxus shrugged, "What? I'm just stating a fact. The kid failed and got beat, am I supposed to pity him or something?"

Natsu stared at him, dumbfounded, "He nearly sacrificed his life to save us!"

"Are you expecting me to be impressed?" Laxus asked, "He wouldn't have had to do that if you guys were stronger."

Flames shot up Natsu's arms as his anger got the best of him.

"You going to fight me?" Laxus asked, "Cus I've been bored all day and squashing you might give me a bit of entertainment."

Natsu forced his breathing to even out to the point where the flames disappeared and turned away, "No" he said, "I'm going to go check on my friends." He began his walk back to the hall, ignoring Laxus' taunts. He entered the hall at the same time the medic walked out of the infirmary. All the members of the guild crowded around her as she exited, eager for information on their friends.

The medic put her hands up to quiet the crowd as she spoke, "Both of them are incredibly injured." She started off saying, "But I'm expecting them both to make full recoveries." Nearly everyone in the guild breathed a sigh of relief at the news. "However," she continued, "I don't want you lot crowding them, they need their rest." The members of the crowd nodded solemnly in agreement. "Neither of them are awake." she stated, "But a few of you can go in to sit with them." She finished her assessment and walked off, presumably to find Makarov and give him a more detailed report. As soon as the medic left fighting broke out among the members as to who should get to see them first.

Finally Mirajane threw up her hands and shouted, "Enough!" as all eyes turned to her she continued, "How about we let their team see them first?" She said, looking directly at Natsu, Erza, Happy, and Lucy. There were murmured agreements from the crowd as they parted to allow Natsu's team to get through. They entered the infirmary quietly and closed the door behind them. At the sight of the two men Lucy choked on her breath. Both were covered completely in bandages, and if it wasn't bandaged it was bruised. Blood was already seeping through the bandage that wrapped around Gray's shirtless torso like a sash.

"Oh my God." Lucy whispered as she approached the beds. She reached out tentatively with both hands and place one on both Loke's and Gray's legs, needing to assure herself that they were real. The three wizards pulled chairs up between the beds so they could see both Gray and Loke and Happy fluttered over their heads before settling down at the foot of Gray's bed.

Natsu sighed and leaned back in his chair, "So now we wait?" He asked.

Erza nodded, "So now we wait." She repeated in affirmation.

It was a few hours before Gray began to stir. Natsu and the others had taken turns taking naps so that if either Loke or Gray woke up someone would be there to help them, and Natsu was awake at that moment. Natsu flew to Gray's side as soon as he saw him moving. Before saying anything he helped him into a sitting position and handed him a glass of water from the bedside table. Gray nodded his thanks before gulping down the water.

"How are you feeling?" Natsu asked.

"Like I got hit by a train." Gray groaned, "Twice."

Natsu chuckled, "Do you need anything? I can get you the medic, or-"

He stood up and turned to walk away but Gray caught his arm, "I'm fine." He assured him.

Natsu nodded, "Right, sorry."

Grey drew his eyebrows together, "Why are you acting like this?" He asked.

"Like what?"

Gray motioned up and down, "Like _this._ Usually you're itching to fight me or ignoring me. And now you're wearing my necklace?"

"Oh," Natsu said softly, "right." He pulled the necklace off his head and slid it over Grey's, "That's better."

Gray shook his head and sighed, "Seriously man, what's up?"

Natsu sighed and said, "We thought you were dead. You pulled the same crap you usually do and tired to sacrifice yourself, and we thought you finally succeeded. You disappeared and then we didn't hear from you for weeks. Some spirit found your necklace and Loke's glasses and you were considered dead. We built you guys memorials and everything."

Gray scoffed, "Seriously! I wasn't even gone for that long!"

Natsu's eyes widened, "Gray," he said softly, "You were gone for nearly a month."

Gray's eyebrows shot up, "What?" He gasped. He shook his head in disbelief before closing his eyes and letting his head fall back against the headboard. "A month." he whispered, "Time passes differently in the spirit world."

"How long were you in the spirit world?" Natsu asked.

"Not very long." Gray replied, "A few hours maybe. We were unconscious for a bit of it."

"A few hours?" Natsu asked, "I thought humans couldn't survive that long in the spirit world, isn't it impossible to breathe?"

Gray nodded, "Usually, but pulling the demon through created a rip in the barrier that keeps the two worlds separate. The air was thin but it was enough to keep me alive. We came crashing down in this cavern, I'm not sure how long we stayed there unconcious. The demon was still alive and I held it off as Loke tried to get his magic energy back up to a high enough level that he could get us out of there."

"You held off that thing by yourself?" Natsu asked.

Gray shrugged, "Like I said, it was already injured. It wasn't that difficult to kill it. Anyway, Loke managed to get us back to Fiore but he was completely drained. I practically carried him the rest of the way here. We were walking for a few days, but that was it. I didn't realize how long we were actually gone."

Natsu shook his head in amazement, "I'm just glad you're back." He said honestly, "It's not the same without you."

Gray couldn't help the smile that slid across his face, "Thanks Natsu." He said quietly.

Natsu nodded, and noticing Gray's subdued manner said, "You look tired, you should get some more rest."

Gray nodded and slid further down in the bed, "Rest sounds good right now."

Natsu nodded, "Yeah well you've earned it."

Gray remained silent, already asleep. Natsu made his way back to his chair and sat down heavily, not realizing how tired he was until then. He leaned over and tapped Lucy's shoulder to wake her up. She tilted her head to look at him, "What is it?" she whispered.

"You want to take over?" Natsu asked, stifling a yawn.

Lucy nodded, "Yeah, sure. Did anything happen while I was out?" She asked.

Natsu thought back to the conversation he had with Gray and, deciding it was Gray's story to tell, said, "No, they should be waking up soon though."

Lucy nodded again, "Ok, get some sleep."

"Thanks Lucy." Natsu murmured as he closed his eyes. Within a few seconds he too was asleep.

The End

I apologize if anyone was ooc in the end, I tried to stay close to the true characters.

Thank you so much, anyone who read this and please review!


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